Citizen Portal
Sign In

Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows

Get Lifetime Access

Ridgecrest police report AB 481 military-equipment use, council renews authorization

Ridgecrest City Council · April 16, 2026

Loading...

AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Summary

The Ridgecrest Police Department presented its annual AB 481 report summarizing use and training with drones, BearCat armored vehicle, AR-15 patrol rifles and less-lethal munitions; council approved staff recommendation to renew the ordinance allowing continued use and training.

At the council meeting on April 15 the Ridgecrest Police Department presented its annual AB 481 military-equipment report and asked the council to renew the ordinance authorizing use of specified equipment.

Police described the equipment inventory and usage over the past year: the BearCat armored vehicle was deployed 23 times (including critical-response and community events); two larger drones had 24 deployments (including training and CRU support); flash-bang diversionary devices were deployed 12 times (mostly training); less-lethal shotgun rounds and 40mm projectiles were used in training (approximately 100 and 60 rounds, respectively); and the department reported purchases of patrol rifles and ammunition for training. The department said most uses were for critical-response operations or training and emphasized de-escalation and officer safety as reasons for retaining the tools. “We have saved at least three lives that I’m convinced that due to the…training and equipment we would have probably used deadly force against them,” one sergeant said while describing outcomes where the BearCat and tactics aided negotiations.

Staff and the chief recommended renewal of the ordinance and filing the required annual report; council moved to approve the staff recommendation and a vote to renew carried 4–0. Council members asked about training, officer proficiency and oversight; police confirmed annual qualifications and that the department rotates chemical agents and other expiring items.

The council also considered associated budget estimates for training ammunition and supplies but did not adopt a separate large purchase in the meeting minutes. Staff said procurement and budget questions would be handled through the normal budgeting process.